Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday Germany would not retaliate against a decision by the United States to impose sanctions on companies building the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed legislation to impose sanctions on firms constructing the underwater pipeline to bring Russian natural gas to Germany. “I see no other way than to hold talks to make clear that we don’t approve of it,” Merkel said, condemning the extraterritorial nature of the sanctions. The Nord

The Bank of England published a new discussion paper Wednesday which lays outs how it will test the country’s financial system and its resilience to climate change. In a statement Wednesday, the central bank said it would use the paper to consult stakeholders on how the exercise would be designed. The Bank said the 2021 biennial exploratory scenario (BES) exercise would be used to, “test the resilience of the current business models of the largest banks, insurers and the financial system to clim

Oppenheimer downgraded the stock after the company’s negative earnings report on Tuesday. “F2Q20 adjusted operating profit of $684M was well short of our estimate/consensus of $900M/ $957M, respectively, driven by soft global trade/economic conditions, increased Ground segment service offering expenses (e.g. weekend delivery implementation), mix shift headwinds, competitive pricing, as well as the timing of cyberweek (F3Q20). We anticipate some of the aforementioned headwinds to abate and F2H20

“Real simply, FDX reported an awful quarter and unlike 1Q20, this one doesn’t look like it can be pinned on ‘Macro,'” Gordon Haskett analyst Don Bilson wrote Wednesday. But as the number of disappointing quarters grows, FedEx could find itself at risk of an attack by an activist investor in a bid to shake up management, Bilson warned clients. Smith founded FedEx in 1971 and serves as both the company’s chairman and chief executive. “With each passing quarter and one miss after another, it’s gett

Nattapong Wongloungud / EyeEmNearly 200 workers at a Baltimore real estate developer will be having the happiest of holidays: The average employee will get a $50,000 bonus. The bonus payment is in addition to the firm’s annual year-end bonus and other workplace benefits. Paying the appropriate taxes on your bonus pay is a different matter. Consider that individuals at the highest income tax bracket — 37% — are subject to the highest levies on long-term capital gains. There’s also the net investm

CNBC’s Jim Cramer breaks down the latest housing data and what it means for the U.S. economy. The “Mad Money” host sits down for a one-on-one with Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks and later in the show he reveals a group of stocks that are poised to rally higher, even as the market continues to climb to new highs. It’s a sign that we’re finally, finally, finally recovered from the last one.” Eli Lilly’s David Ricks responds to Sen. Elizabeth WarrenDavid Ricks, CEO, Eli Lilly Scott Mlyn | CNBCCEO David R

Pelosi opens impeachment vote debate on House floor with pledge of allegianceHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivers remarks to open the final day of debate before a historic vote on whether to impeach President Trump.

Fed fear has shifted from high inflation to what if the lower rates don’t work: Canaccord Genuity’s DwyerTony Dwyer, Canaccord Genuity, joins ‘Fast Money Halftime Report’ to discuss the state of the markets and why he’s bullish on the 2020 market.

Facebook and Instagram will no longer allow influencers to promote vaping, tobacco products or weapons on its platforms using “branded content.” Instagram announced Wednesday it would no longer allow “branded content” that promotes those goods on either platform. In June, Instagram a change that would let advertisers promote posts from influencers, or users who work with brands to promote services or products. Users see a “paid partnership with” tag on a post when viewing that branded content on

FCADETROIT — The merger of Fiat Chrysler and French automaker PSA Group will reshape the global automotive industry in an effort to address unprecedented change occurring around autonomous and all-electric vehicles. The merged company is expected to achieve cost savings of 3.7 billion euros (US $4.1 billion) a year without closing factories. “It is better to face the challenges of the future together than on a standalone basis,” PSA CEO Carlos Tavares told investors during a call to discuss the

Half of the young clients who are planning to leave California are fleeing to locales with lower taxes, according to the data. Meanwhile, 14% of these young investors are leaving California for places with low property taxes. California has a top individual income tax rate of 13.3% — the highest in the country, according to the Tax Foundation. John ColettiThe Lone Star state doesn’t tax individual income, making it a welcome change for high-earners based in California. It has a combined state an

This level is tricky terrain for Tesla and could foreshadow a major decline ahead, says Matt Maley, chief market strategist at Miller Tabak. When Tesla last bumped up against this level a year ago, shares began to spiral before bottoming out in June. “But I think when you step back, basically, the bottom line is Tesla right now continues to dominate the EV space,” Schlossberg said. Temperamental trading on Tesla is likely to continue, he adds, so he prefers a different method of exposure to the

Many Wall Street strategists share the concern about the ballooning corporate debt load but few sound as worried as Trahan. In a Tuesday note, Trahan said that U.S. corporate debt has surged by 50% since 2009 and now stands at nearly $10 trillion. Such a jump in corporate debt would be more worrisome had it not been for the steady economic recovery and steep drop in yields, he said. “Leaving aside our biases for markets and the economy, LEIs of credit markets point to a deterioration of ratings

FedEx — FedEx sank 10% in midday trading after the global shipper reported a 40% year-over-year decline in profit in its second fiscal quarter. General Mills — Shares of General Mills rose more than 1% after the food manufacturer reported second-quarter earnings that topped expectations. The company reported adjusted earnings per share of 95 cents, above the 88 cents expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. General Mills did miss revenue estimates, however, reporting sales of $4.421 billion

It’s impossible to read the capital markets landscape correctly consistently, but hedge fund manager Stanley Druckenmiller was thought to be among the best at it. In June, Druckenmiller said he sold everything and loaded up on Treasurys after President Donald Trump sent a tweet in May that increase U.S.-China trade tensions. Worries over U.S.-China trade have subsided for the time being after both sides reached a so-called phase one trade deal last week. Prior to that, Druckenmiller thought stoc

Elon Musk attends the groundbreaking ceremony of the Tesla Gigafactory in Shanghai, east China, on January 7, 2019. Ding Ting | Xinhua News Agency | Getty ImagesTesla stock reached an intraday all-time high Wednesday and is on pace to reach its highest closing price ever. Tesla shares shot up Wednesday afternoon more than 4%, briefly reaching a new all-time high of $395.00 per share, surpassing intraday highs reached when CEO Elon Musk sent his infamous “funding secured” tweet in August 2018. Te

Eddie Seal | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe U.S. oil industry shook up the world energy order in the last decade, and now it has been going through a shakeout of its own that is expected to end in more bankruptcies and mergers. That has made life hard for U.S. drillers this year, with oil prices below their break-even level much of the year. Daniel Yergin, who has authored books on the evolution of the oil industry, said the U.S. industry is likely to morph now, as the industry hits an inflection p

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called on members of Congress to stand up to “lawlessness and tyranny” on Wednesday, as she marked the start of the final formal debate in the House over whether to impeach President Donald Trump. But, very sadly now, our founders’ vision of a republic is under threat from actions from the White House,” Pelosi said on the House floor. “That is why today, as speaker of the House, I solemnly and sadly open the debate on the impeachment of the pres

Skepticism is brewing in the markets as much of the details have not been confirmed by both sides. It’s “more trade truce than deal … It is unclear if any China tariffs on U.S. goods have been reduced … Chinese officials were light on the deal content when unveiling the text of the agreement. Meanwhile, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said China pledged to buy a total of $40 billion in farm goods over a two-year period.

The yield curve, which flashed the biggest recession signal in more than 10 years and sent shock waves through the financial markets just a few months ago, is now signaling things are just fine. This move is called a steepening by financial pros and a reversal from the inversion (short-term rates rising above long-term yields) that triggered fears. The action helped undo the yield curve inversion by lowering short-term rates and goosing expectations for future economic growth, which raised long-